1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for determining whether a mobile terminal operates normally. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for determining whether a Front End Module (FEM) or a Power Amplifier Module (PAM) of a Radio Frequency (RF) end operates normally.
2. Description of the Related Art
To meet customer demands for products that are miniaturized and have a slim profile and are provided with advanced functions based on the development of Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) and computing technology, mobile terminals of various small sizes have been available and a demand thereof has rapidly increased.
A mobile terminal may not operate normally due to an external impact (e.g., vibration, a fall, and the like). Also, as time elapses, characteristics of the mobile terminal's hardware deteriorate and the mobile terminal may not operate normally. According to the related art, when hardware abnormalities are generated in a mobile terminal due to an external impact or the passage of time, a service center is normally used to solve the abnormalities. The service center should use high-priced equipment, e.g., communication test equipment, a spectrum analyzer, a power supply, a Personal Computer (PC), and the like, for analyzing the hardware abnormalities of the mobile terminals. However, since most service centers do not have the above-described high-priced equipment, the service centers cannot analyze the hardware abnormalities of the mobile terminal. Therefore, problems are diagnosed based on a serviceman's intuition and experience which can be inaccurate. Also, most servicemen solve diagnosed problems by simply replacing a mainboard of the mobile terminal which generates unnecessary monetary waste. In addition, even when the high-priced equipment is available, an increased amount of time is taken to analyze the hardware abnormalities accurately according to the related art.
Therefore, a need exists for an apparatus and method for reducing time taken to analyze hardware abnormalities and monetary waste when determining whether a mobile terminal operates normally.